* “Oh yeah, they’ll be welcoming us with open arms,” manager Terry Francona said sardonically of the reception that awaits the staggered Sox.

* “Are you dealing with rational people?” said [Kevin Youkilis], infielder by trade, left fielder again by necessity. “I don’t know, they’re Red Sox fans. If they want to boo, what are you going to do? People boo players when they come into a game trying to win a game. Some people will, some people won’t. It depends on the radio, and what they’re saying. Even our parking lot attendants listen to the radio.”

So c’mon: welcome them with open arms. Pedroia, Youkilis, Loretta, even emergency start Julian Tavarez — it’s not these guys’ fault.

(Emergency starter Julian Tavarez, you say? Yup…because the on-the-verge-of-being-traded David Wells has been sent home to literally pack his bags and wait for a phone call. Up to the minute updates are are here; the Globe writers get paid for this, after all. I’m heading out to grab some food.)

It’s dispiriting to hear the players make those comments. In fact when they were in Oakland, the Sox did a good job of avoiding any contact with their fandom whatsoever during BP. I don’t know if the players understand that the average fan, not the WEEI windbags or the dirt dog supporters really understand that this team is struggling due to events completely beyond their control.

They are they Red Sox. They are our team. And I hope the players and coaches understand that we support them.

“Prices have dropped pretty drastically,” Brownell said. “Who wants to pay through the nose to see a lousy team play with third-string players?”

“To be honest, at this point, I have no interest in going to games at Fenway this weekend and wouldn’t mind giving them away for free.”

“They’re playing bad, and that’s why I knew there’d be tickets because I wasn’t worrying about it selling out”

“Even if I had to eat the tickets, it’s better than paying for the extra night at the hotel and suffering through another loss”

Then there’s this:
“Sox officials continue to exhibit a sunny optimism, perhaps nowhere more evident than in the team’s offer of playoff and World Series seats to season-ticket holders.
In a letter mailed recently by the Red Sox, season-ticket holders were offered “warm greetings as we drive through the `dog days’ of August and plunge into the pennant chase in September.” Later in the letter, the Sox wrote that “the return of Curt Schilling and the reliability of other veterans such as Manny Ramirez, Trot Nixon, Tim Wakefield, Mike Timlin, Jason Varitek, and Doug Mirabelli have been gratifying.”